Chapter 71
Chapter 71
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Seven Seats: Celestia (5)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A sheer cliff on the border of the Islat Kingdom.
Lafaria stood there, gazing down at a single tombstone with a complicated look in her eyes.
Hoo—
From the mouth of Lafaria, wrapped in a black muffler, came a cold breath.
There was only one reason she had come here alone, abandoning her comrades.
To tie up loose ends herself regarding the matter she had begun in the Great Forest.
“……”
Lafaria’s eyes took in the tombstone before her.
It was something she herself had erected long ago.
The grave of her first master, the Sword Ghost Lafaria.
The man who had first taught her the sword.
“……Master, it’s been a long time.”
Sweep, sweep—
Lafaria’s hand quietly brushed away the dust accumulated on the tombstone.
On the surface of the stone where her hand passed, characters were inscribed that Lafaria herself could not understand.
A jumble of complex letters.
Naturally, she had not carved them herself.
When she had first set up the tombstone, there had been no writing here at all.
There was only one reason such dense script had been engraved on it.
—Exile, Acheronar.
It was because an elf who had been banished from the Great Forest alongside Lafaria had inscribed a ritual on the stone.
“……”
A brief greeting to her master.
With that finished, Lafaria immediately raised her hand.
She placed it on top of the tombstone and poured her mana into it in full.
Woooooong—
Blue mana light filled the tombstone, overwhelming the rituals inscribed upon it.
From within that, Lafaria uttered the name of the kin who had crafted this stone for her.
“I know you can hear me, Acheronar.”
The true nature of the tombstone touching Lafaria’s hand.
It was a communication device, modified by the exile Acheronar to connect her to Lafaria.
Zzzt, zzzt—
Amid short bursts of noise passing between them.
Soon, a thin woman’s voice began to echo from beyond the stone.
—“Long time no see, Lafaria.”
“……Acheronar.”
—“To think the swordmaster called the Seven Seats would come looking for me. See, that’s why you gotta live a long life.”
Lafaria frowned at the voice laced with playfulness.
Not just from inscribing the ritual on the tombstone, but Acheronar’s temperament had always been rather mischievous.
That such a woman was living quietly in seclusion was, to Lafaria, something close to a miracle.
“I have something to discuss.”
Yet even so, she was currently the person Lafaria relied on more than anyone.
An elf mage who had lived for centuries.
No one was more suitable to discuss an ancient curse tied to history.
—“What’s it about, Lafaria?”
That was why Lafaria had sought out Acheronar.
To share a secret story she couldn’t tell anyone else.
“The Ineffable Unknowns. And the World Tree.”
—“……”
Just two words slipped from Lafaria’s lips.
Immediately after, silence fell from beyond the tombstone.
The Ineffable Unknowns.
What Lafaria had discovered in the pilgrim’s journal—a tale of the vast laws observing the world.
Toward Acheronar, who chose silence upon hearing of it, Lafaria continued her story.
“You’re still playing with those dolls today, aren’t you?”
—“……”
“I’ve been thinking about it ever since then. Why you holed up in that tiny castle. And why you kept up that doll play alone—”
Her clear eyes fixed on the tombstone.
The resolute gaze pierced through her inner doubts.
“Now I think I get it.”
—“Lafaria, you……”
“What you’re doing… and the information I’m after. They don’t seem all that different.”
A vision of the colossal tree flashed through her mind.
That primordial lifeform of unknown origin.
The vast forest cultivated by the giant tree rooted in the earth.
The queen and the spirits.
And Unity.
All memories tied to the Great Forest were meshing together into a single fragment within her.
“How much do you know about the World Tree?”
After a long tale, past the horrific carnage, the elf who had grasped the edge of truth asked.
—“More than you know.”
Acheronar answered.
It seemed the transgression Lafaria had committed long ago with her had yet to end.
A seething heat was drawing her forward, after all.
“Acheronar. There are people trying to summon something dangerous.”
—“……What?”
“There’s a faction up to something shady with the World Tree’s fruit. Unity… or something on par with it, maybe. To investigate, I need help from kin versed in magic.”
There was no more need to hesitate.
The Sword Ghost, Lafaria.
She spoke her business to her old comrade from ages past.
“Looks like I’ll need your help.”
The Sword Ghost uttered her clear resolve.
At her waist, the magic sword emitting blue light gleamed.
* * * * * *
Priella Atria.
The junior member of the Eight Sword Assembly and one of its mercenaries, she was currently heading to the Empire alone after parting with Lafaria.
She had entered the Great Forest under orders from the leader Lafaria, and had received leave from the Sword Ghost herself.
Naturally, there was only one reason the Sword Ghost granted her leave.
The elf guide from the Great Forest assigned to Priella had not abandoned her and fled alone.
Thus, she felt sorry toward her youngest member, Priella.
Separately, it seemed Lafaria had business of her own.
Munch, munch—
Priella, fully enjoying her vacation, bit deeply into the skewer held in her right hand.
“Mmm, hmm……”
Her hand that had bitten into the skewer clutched a bag stuffed full of more skewers.
It was a luxury unimaginable from her days wandering the Great Forest in rags.
Priella no longer had to worry about running out of supplies.
All thanks to her new comrades.
‘Celestia Secret Society… that was the name.’
—Celestia Secret Society.
The secret gathering held every night in Priella’s dreams, within a vast magical library.
There, figures from all walks of life gathered in one place, enjoying various liquors and foods while fostering camaraderie.
Mages from the Magic Tower, lords from noble houses, researchers from secret societies, officers from magic corps—
People from every field moved toward a single goal.
Even Sirius, who had been with her in the Great Forest, was a former holy knight from the White Church.
‘Why the hell is a holy knight in the group?’
Of course, it did seem like a gathering where a holy knight shouldn’t be.
Perhaps feeling pangs of conscience, Austin had a few days ago berated himself, claiming he wasn’t human but a beast.
‘Austin’s got his reasons, so I’ll respect that.’
In any case, Priella valued her meetings with those members.
With the archmage’s power in the library, they sent her supplies.
Depending on the situation, she could even get aid from the lead mage or the acting head of a marquis house.
What Priella offered them in return was simple.
Leveraging her mercenary status, she handled their tasks without revealing clients.
No different from before.
“Mmm, hmm… Should I eat five more?”
Sweep, sweep—
As she walked forward vigorously, munching on skewers.
Suddenly, several presences snagged on Priella’s senses.
Shhhh—
Along with a chill, her impassive brows twitched.
She bit off a piece of meat from the skewer and continued stepping forward.
“……Boss. Looks like she’s alone.”
“……Yeah. Everyone, get ready.”
“……She’s got what looks like an expensive sword at her waist. You sure we should go through with this?”
“……We’ve got five guys. What’s the problem? That thing looks purely decorative—probably can’t even cut properly.”
Faint voices drifted to Priella’s ears from the rustling bushes.
Her sharp senses even picked up the whispers of the stealthy bandits.
Hmm—
After a brief moment glaring at the bushes.
Soon, a crow flying in the sky landed on her shoulder.
“Perfect timing. I needed practice.”
—Caw, caw—!
Priella’s new partner.
The shadow spirit returned to her shoulder.
Sensing something from her demeanor, perhaps.
Shing—
Clank—!
From beyond the bushes, the bandits’ movements followed swiftly.
“Surround her! Rush her fast!”
“Yes, boss!”
Bandits leaping out one by one from the bushes, weapons in hand.
Priella, watching them, tucked the fully eaten skewer into her bag.
Drip—
She licked the sauce from her fingers, then spoke to the crow on her shoulder.
“Ready?”
—Caw—!
“Let’s go, Shadow.”
—?
Ignoring the crow tilting its head, Priella’s hand went to the sword at her waist.
Bandits closing in from all sides.
Crude axes, sharp spear tips, charging lances—
Countless weapons aimed at and swung toward Priella.
Sweep—
Priella drew the sword from her waist.
“One opponent! Subdue her!”
“Take her sword!”
“Non-sword, Form 5—”
Shing—
Whoosh—!
A swift thrust following the draw.
In that single motion aimed at the foe before her, Priella’s shadow beneath her stirred.
Spreading darkness.
A chill extending from the ground now targeted the bandits’ throats.
“W-What the……!”
“T-The shadows……!”
Puk! Puk! Puuk—!
Five shadows mimicking Priella pierced the bandits simultaneously.
Clank—
Priella’s sword returned to its sheath.
The Secret Society member Priella had subdued all the bandits before her with a single swing.
Well done, Shadow.
Having dealt with the bandits, Priella stroked the spirit that settled on her shoulder after sheathing.
—?
Whoosh, whoosh—
Of course, the crow spirit on her shoulder just shook its head, expressing doubt as always.
* * * * * *
Doctor Begerton Antares.
A member of the Celestia Secret Society and its technical advisor, he was currently preparing an experiment in his secret lab.
Gurgle, gurgle—
The culture vat moving with grotesque sounds.
He was preparing to process the fruit that would serve as the medium.
“You’re telling me to cut this now?”
“Divide it into exactly six equal parts. Make it clean, please.”
Of course, his colleague—Reyntas, who had received the doctor’s request—didn’t look pleased.
The doctor had summoned him abruptly and told him to slice some hideous thing.
Clank—
As Reyntas drew a sword from his waist to fulfill the request.
He voiced a small complaint toward the doctor before him.
“Couldn’t you just grab any old knife and hack at it?”
“I wish, but this isn’t something you can do that to. Better to leave it to someone skilled with blades.”
“What the hell is this thing anyway?”
Right after Reyntas asked the doctor about it.
Kekeke—
The doctor burst into frivolous laughter and told Reyntas.
“That’s the World Tree’s fruit. Specially prepared for the new body I’ll cultivate.”
“……What?”
The doctor’s words.
Reyntas’s face stiffened upon hearing them.
Because they made no sense.
—The World Tree’s fruit.
He knew well how valuable that item was.
“Wait, what? You’re saying this grotesque thing is the World Tree’s fruit?”
“Yes, indeed. First time I’ve seen one myself.”
“Didn’t that guy Sirius snag the World Tree’s fruit from the Great Forest? The whole outside world was in an uproar over the birth of a new Seven Seat—”
Reyntas tried to refute the doctor’s claim right away.
But only for a moment—
Realizing something, Reyntas looked at the doctor in shock.
“Doctor, don’t tell me……”
“Got it directly from that Sirius. See? Isn’t it just adorable?”
“You know Sirius? The great enemy who just joined the church as a new Seven Seat?”
A voice thick with bewilderment escaped him.
However, the doctor continued as if it were the most natural thing.
“Reyntas. I have quite a few friends, don’t I? You’re a pretty capable one yourself, of course.”
“……”
“So don’t worry—just cut the fruit nicely.”
Reyntas, sword drawn, gave a hollow smile toward the doctor.
“Ha… Now you’re friends with a Seven Seat too? Living long enough, you hear the craziest shit.”
The info he’d just heard was pretty shocking even to him.
Perhaps he’d been too narrow-minded about the doctor all this time.
The thought even crossed his mind.
“Reyntas. Connections are vital to a person.”
But soon, Reyntas’s expression began to harden again.
The cause was, naturally, the doctor before him.
“Swordsmen like you, with brains gone stiff from the daily grind, might not get it.”
“……”
“But for intellectuals like me, it’s crucial. Like culture itself.”
“……”
“Fortunately, we have a highly capable researcher here. A brilliant mind even the Empire fears.”
“……”
“So, Reyntas, make sure you don’t lose a splendid connection like me……”
“I get it, so shut up, Doctor—”
The doctor’s endless lecture on making friends.
Reyntas’s cold voice quietly settled over the lab.
Hm—
The doctor meekly closed his mouth at the sight.
“Enough bullshit. Shut it.”
Slice—
Reyntas’s blade cut into the World Tree’s fruit.
It was sliced precisely into six pieces.